Rihanna's famous 'selfie phone' landing at L.A.'s Grammy Museum

Rihanna chats with L.A. Police Commission President Steve Soboroff during the May 9 game between the Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder at Staples Center.

Rihanna chats with L.A. Police Commission President Steve Soboroff during the May 9 game between the Clippers and the Oklahoma City Thunder at Staples Center. (Paul Buck / EPA)

Christie D'Zurilla

Rihanna's selfie phone sold for $66,500 -- to a person who turned around and gave it to the Grammy Museum

Remember that phone Rihanna dropped and broke a couple of weeks back after taking a selfie with the guy next to her at a Clippers game? The one that belonged to L.A. Police Commission President Steve Soboroff?

Sure, first it landed on the floor. Then it landed on EBay. And now it has landed a permanent home at the Grammy Museum, a skip and a jump away from Staples Center, where the saga started.

"It's not often that we are able to obtain an artifact so quickly after it makes headlines," said Rita George, deputy executive director of the Grammy Museum, in a statement released Wednesday.

"We're excited to welcome this interesting piece of pop culture into our permanent collection here at the Grammy Museum and we are even more excited to show our support for the Los Angeles Police Department and the great work that they do."

Last week, Soboroff decided to put the busted device up for auction, with proceeds to be split to benefit police cadets and the families of fallen officers. Rihanna authorized the sale, he said. The bidding, which started at $250, closed at $66,500, well beyond the $10,000 mark the foundation had hoped to hit.

The art of posing for that perfect photo. Celebrities caught in the act.

Unfortunately, the winning bidder wasn't qualified for that amount, but an anonymous private donor stepped up and matched the price, the police foundation said.

The donor then turned around and handed off the famous selfie phone to the museum, Soboroff said.

Rihanna — who'd signed the back of the iPhone 5s with the note, "I [heart] LAPD" — had tweeted an apology to Soboroff and during the three-day auction threw $25,000 into his fundraising pot. Soboroff and his wife matched that donation, and the phone's selling price brought the total amount raised to $116,500.

The phone still works, incidentally — it just has a shattered screen.

Museum security will pick up the phone Thursday, and then it will be several weeks before its permanent display is prepared, according to a spokeswoman. So, more details are yet to come.

The Grammy Museum, which is open seven days a week, is at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles.